The Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Valour FC have a new official stadium naming rights agreement and it’s a made-in-Manitoba partnership.
IG Field will officially become Princess Auto Stadium this April after the signing of a new 10-year naming rights agreement. The rebranding of the facility will begin in the spring with the installation of new signage on the stadium’s exterior, as well the company’s logo at centre field of the new FieldTurf being installed for the upcoming Canadian Football League and Canadian Premier League seasons.
“This is another step in the long-term relationship we’ve already had with Princess Auto,” said Winnipeg Football Club President and CEO, Wade Miller. “The company has been a huge sponsor of the club over the years; they’ve ran ticket promotions with their staff that began in the 1990s and most recently sponsored our Princess Auto Tailgate Area and the game day broadcast on CJOB. Now we’re thrilled to have them involved even further on game days and through other events we’re planning for the stadium.”
The monetary specifics aren’t disclosed in the new agreement, but Miller said the dollar figure is at market value for naming rights for a major iconic stadium in Canada.
IG Wealth Management had been the original naming rights partner since the Club’s stadium opened in 2013, first as Investors Group Field and then IG Field. The company will continue to serve as the team’s wealth management sponsor.
Princess Auto, meanwhile, was founded in Winnipeg in 1933 and now has 54 stores across the country.
“This is a huge deal for our company,” began Princess Auto CEO, Ken Larson. “Number one, we’re proud to be Winnipeggers, Manitobans, and Canadians and you don’t get much bigger or much more Canadian than the Blue Bombers and the CFL.
“Harvey Tallman was a season ticket holder back at Osborne Stadium; his sons Larry and Bob became season ticket holders at the Polo Park Stadium and continued that to what is now Princess Auto Stadium. Now Bob’s sons, Matthew and Mark, run the business and they are ticket holders. There’s a long family connection with the Blue Bombers. They’re a hard-working, authentic Canadian institution just like our customers, just like us. It really is a natural fit.”
Larson added this new agreement is about much more than Princess Auto securing the naming rights to the stadium and capitalizing on what that will mean for the brand.
“When we talked about this with our ownership team it wasn’t about, ‘Hey, let’s cut a cheque and we can get some marketing’, it was because this fits with who we are,” he said. “We’re so proud to have started on Princess Street and so proud to be Winnipeg-based.
“More importantly, we view the stadium as a hub in the community where people come together to cheer on the Blue Bombers – Winnipeggers, Manitobans from all walks of life who are football fans. We view this as our little way to help out in going down this path.”
The WFC announced last week it will replace the stadium turf at IG Field/Princess Auto Stadium. Miller said that and the new stadium naming rights agreement are part of the Club’s ongoing effort to upgrade the south Winnipeg facility.
The Blue Bombers open training camp in May with their home preseason game scheduled for May 31st vs. the Calgary Stampeders.
Valour FC will play its home opener on June 2nd against Vancouver FC.
